The Hague, Netherlands (CNN) - Hours before the launch of the third Nuclear Security Summit set to begin Monday in The Hague, the White House announced an agreement with the government of Japan to assist in the disposal of hundreds of kilograms of nuclear material currently stored within its borders.

The material in question consists of both highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium created for an academic research project launched by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency in the 1960's. Technological advances have since rendered the material unnecessary for the project's purpose of studying fast reactor cores, and the two countries have pledged to work together on its removal and disposal.

The White House also announced the completion of nuclear disposal projects undertaken in partnership with Italy and Belgium that were agreed to at the 2012 summit in Seoul. In joint statements released Monday morning, the nations announced that approximately 20 kilograms of nuclear material had been removed from Italy, and a "significant amount" of material had been removed from Belgium.

Another joint statement released by the leaders of Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Georgia, Hungary, Mexico, South Korea, Romania, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, and Vietnam highlighted the elimination of highly enriched uranium in those countries.

The statement expressed "appreciation" to Russia, the United States and the International Atomic Energy Agency for "their assistance in converting research reactors from HEU fuel to LEU fuel and in related HEU removal efforts." The nuclear material removed from these countries will initially be secured and ultimately disposed or "downblended" to low enriched uranium – or LEU.

President Barack Obama first talked about the need for enhanced security of civilian nuclear material in a 2009 speech delivered on a visit to Prague. Subsequently the U.S. hosted the first Nuclear Security Summit in 2010 with the goal of reducing the threat of nuclear terrorism by increasing the security and reducing the supplies of international civilian nuclear supplies.

In a fact sheet distributed ahead of Monday's summit, the White House pointed to many successes achieved since 2009. By the U.S. government's count, 12 nations have eliminated their supplies of HEU or separated plutonium, 27 countries have removed or disposed of nearly 3,000 kilograms of nuclear material and 24 reactors have either been downgraded from highly enriched uranium to low enriched uranium or shut down entirely.

Additionally, the White House points to the United States' role in helping to secure 218 buildings in 5 countries that store "weapons-usable nuclear materials."

soundoff(43 Responses)

Tampa Tim

rla – Sadly, the damage that the previous occupant created did not end in January 2009.

March 24, 2014 12:37 pm at 12:37 pm |

Rudy NYC

rla wrote:

Tampa Tim- Bush has not been in charge for the past 5 years and In my opinion Bush WAS rthe strt of the situation we are in today but we than elected a MORo- president community organizer wha has made every situation worse. Plus we are a weaker nation.
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"... made every situation worse. ..." Really? Like what, for example?

Why don't you just come out say what you really mean? Admit it. You detest Pres. Obama so much that he will never do anything right by you, not even putting his shoes on the correct feet. Don't you realize how noticeable that hate gets whenever someone just categorically dismisses the POTUS without cause? Why are you trying to win more haters to your cause? I think you folks have already signed them all up? I think your well is dry. Besides, who would want to vote for an angry candidate?

March 24, 2014 12:43 pm at 12:43 pm |

Silence DoGood

@Dominican mama 4 Obama
In a fact sheet distributed ahead of Monday's summit, the White House pointed to many successes achieved since 2009.
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All without the GOP lifting one finger to assist but using both hands to dismantle, discredit, and defame any accomplishment that can be directly attributable to this administration and specifically to this President.
@ Mallory Archer – I am especially enjoying your posts today. Keep up the good work.
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Saw a good posting the other day. Something like: Obama is doing great considering he is facing terrorism and despots in front of him (abroad) and domestic terror and obstructionists and sabotage behind (domestic).

rla, why do other countries not want to be involved with the us, regarding situations like this, and Syria? If we're in, their out. We're now on our own, bush leaves a legacy time will not soften . And it takes both parties wanting things better, before things actually do, he has had zero help, look what bush did with support. The gop has clearly put party first, and then complain Rome is burning. I could never be naive enough to think the gop wouldn't run their ideologies down my throat, they already have, on the state level

March 24, 2014 12:47 pm at 12:47 pm |

rla

Too bad everyone understands your propaganda now!! Crdability at the white house is at an all time low, dems say goodby to the senate in 14 and I hope to God that we get people who have the country in mind when they make decisions instead of the next election and the dividing of the country for political gain- Obama has made Bush and Carter happy as he has the distinction by everyone that the worst president in history is in charge... We are reaping the rewards of voting with our emotions instead of our heads... I hope we can survive the next three years

March 24, 2014 12:53 pm at 12:53 pm |

rla

wise guy– What are those things he wanted to do- Running up debt has shown to be of no help in a recovery and you-I and our children will pay dearly for this line of action! Wish Obama and his progressive dolts would have understoo d the need for jobs instead of focusing on creating a democratic voting base of low information voters

March 24, 2014 12:56 pm at 12:56 pm |

Rudy NYC

wise guy wrote:

"... .... ... The gop has clearly put party first, and then complain Rome is burning. I could never be naive enough to think the gop wouldn't run their ideologies down my throat, they already have, on the state level."
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They have already tried to run their ideologies down the country's throat since the 2010 elections. They ran jobs, but began to legislate morality.

March 24, 2014 12:56 pm at 12:56 pm |

Dominican mama 4 Obama

ria
Bush WAS rthe strt of the situation we are in today but we than elected a MORo- president community organizer wha has made every situation worse. Plus we are a weaker nation. Deterrance is hard to build and easy to lose and the progressives and their singular world view have accelerated our weakening and loss of world respect
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You must be using one of those "smart" phones to post...it's the only thing that would explain the atrocious writing.
Americans no onger have to cliam Canadian citizenship when travelling abroad ria.
The current administration has effectively coalesced other countries to assist us in our foreig policy endeavors and we haven't been left in the lurch in the process.
People do not throw shoes at our current President out of disrespect, nor is he confined to certain countries for travel lest he be arrested upon landing.
I agree with you that thiis administration take credit for where we are currently and how we are viewed by the rest of the world because from where I stand we are in much better shape than we were during Bush's reign of arrogance and terror.

March 24, 2014 12:58 pm at 12:58 pm |

Chris-E...al

And yes the impostor continues his dismantling of this great nation ! 0bama wants to play Patty Cakes and the rest of the world wants to play russian ? ruelete ? What a 0bamanation to Capitalism on this nation !

March 24, 2014 12:59 pm at 12:59 pm |

Silence DoGood

@wise guy "The gop has clearly put party first, and then complain Rome is burning. "
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It is worse than that. If they had a political stand or platform or philosophy they were trying to put forth, that would be about their party. Their whole plan has been to run down and oppose Obama. No matter what. That is why he openly joked about taking the opposite stand to get them to go for his idea. It is just hate Obama. Period.

March 24, 2014 12:59 pm at 12:59 pm |

Dominican mama 4 Obama

Pardon my grammatical errors – I am indulging in this my not-so-secret endeavor at the auto industry-related job that our President helped to save......Thank you Mr. President. Again!

March 24, 2014 01:05 pm at 1:05 pm |

Rudy NYC

Chris-E...al

And yes the impostor continues his dismantling of this great nation ! 0bama wants to play Patty Cakes and the rest of the world wants to play russian ? ruelete ? What a 0bamanation to Capitalism on this nation !
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Yeah, well......better an "imposter" than some imposer thrusting radical right wing social engineering on the country and the entire world, at large.

Just remember as well people the first American president to have a shoe thrown at him in disrespect ,your idiot from Texas Bush..And you wonder why we had no disrespect in foriegn lands that now Pres.Obamas trying diplomaticly to repair .

Pardon my mistype..I meant to say respect which Bushs ignorently screwed up during his two terms with foriegn countries...He was basicly the brunt of most jokes abroad....

March 24, 2014 01:15 pm at 1:15 pm |

Gurgyl

Do these few openly haters of Fox garbage watchers ever know that Obama is elected TWICE, I MEAN TWICE, with thumping majority in the largest well-regulated democracy?

March 24, 2014 01:17 pm at 1:17 pm |

Malory Archer

Fair is Fair
Malory Archer

"ONE political ad from 2008 is your idea of the Dems doing it “incessantly”? Really? REALLY???!!! LOL! Tim’s right – you really ARE in stretch mode!"
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Right from the mouth of the man who became president. Right on nationally televided debate. And if I had the time to go through the 4.3 million google hits, I can guarantee you'd find tons of quotes from lots of elected officials. Timmy appears to be on the dole... maybe HE has time.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

LOL – and when did johm mccain become president????!!!

March 24, 2014 01:18 pm at 1:18 pm |

Dominican mama 4 Obama

Silence DoGood
Saw a good posting the other day. Something like: Obama is doing great considering he is facing terrorism and despots in front of him (abroad) and domestic terror and obstructionists and sabotage behind (domestic).
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And he's been dealing with both non-stop for 6 plus years while having to simultaneously save the economy, and keep the country from going down the toilet.
It took me about one year to catch on to the fact that we had more to fear from our very own domestic taliban (the GOP) than we did from anything the international Taliban might have planned for us.
Of course those who have been keeping track of our political soap opera beyond these past six years will probably tell you that they've been hip to that fact for many more years than that.